Rebecca Bateman
[email protected]
http://phile.cjb.net

I have a bone to pick with The Sparkly Eyed One. He's ruining our show, and I am not happy about it....... "The Beginning". Liked it. Good, solid MythArc. Nice Fowley/Mulder/Scully tension. Decent continuation from The Movie. "Drive" was excellent. Vince's writing was dead-on, and even the minor characters earned my sympathy. "Triangle" was great in a quirky, shippy, Emmy-worthy way. On the flip side, "Dreamland I" - Hated it. Hated it. Wouldn't have dated it. I thought the writing was terrible. The characterizations were forced and unrealistic. And the story was just downright ridiculous. "Dreamland II" was better only because my expectations were low. And it had the Sunflower Seed Scene. "How The Ghosts Stole Christmas". On it's own, I'd give it about a 6 out of 10 rating. Though it only reinforced my belief that CC is a sick, sick man - M&S rolling around in their own blood after thinking the other has shot them, and on Christmas Eve! - it has some nice creepy and shippy elements. However, I have real problems with some of the characterizations and overall mainstream attitude of having Asner and Tomlin guest star.

Then, there's "Rain King". ::shudder, twitch:: I'm not even going to touch that limp, horrid excuse for an XF episode with a ten foot pole.

Where, oh, where has my favorite show gone? This is not "The X-Files" we've come to know and love, pholks. This feels like a new show 10-13 has created to satisfy some new selfish, "narcisstic" urge to fix something that wasn't broken. Episodes like DL I&II and "Ghosts" are only good when sprinkled lightly over a thick mixture of complex, provocative MythArcs and creepy, unique MOTW's. The Show has lost touch with reality. Never before have they just made up rules to suit their own storylines. They've always worked within real life boundaries, and as a consequence, given themselves a high credibility level and established a believable story base. "Ghosts" and DL were episodes that, IMO, slipped outside the barriers of plausibility. It's gotten silly, people! Sure, anything's possible within the realm of the paranormal, (BTW, "paramasturbatory" - LOL!) but you've got to have some sort of rules you consistently stick to, no matter how crazy. An Area 51 government worker who changes bodies with Mulder and tries to get Scully into bed while Mulder dances in his underwear? Our Heroes meeting lonely ghosts who look strangely like famous comedians and attempt only to frighten and/or kill unsuspecting couples using pop psychology? Dana and Fox as matchmaking Cupids? These stories don't even work for me on a level of fantasy. I'm not willing or able as an intelligent, educated person to suspend my disbelief that far.

It seems now they just resort to memory loss or a dream sequence when they don't want to deal with the repercussions of a story (ie., "the big, red Star Trek reset button"). They've started changing the Mulder or Scully character so that he/she suits the story they want to tell instead of vice versa. They've allowed weak scripts that never would have aired a few years ago to slip through.

What happened to Eugene Tooms, Luther Lee Boggs, Donnie Pfaster, and Leonard Betts? Where did Krycek, CSM, MMBH, and yes, Diana Fowley, Jeffrey Spender, and Marita Covarrubiasssss go? I'd rather hate them all week then attempt to swallow someone like Morris Fletcher. I miss the arctic ice worms, Mothmen, killer roaches, and even the poisonous bees.

Don't get me wrong. I'm as big a shipper as they come, but I want the interaction as it relates to the story. I want the story to come first, with the relationship as a supporting pillar, so to speak. I don't want a soap opera. That's why I avoid a lot of daytime TV. The stories and the way the relationship has been nuanced through them is what makes XF so special, IMO. Isn't that how we all first got to know Mulder and Scully? Isn't that why we liked them? I mean, if the series had begun six years ago with M&S sitting down and just blathering about their feelings, a) it would have been an entirely different show, and b) would you or I or any other Phile/Shipper have been as enamored with it?

I know someone finds something to complain about every season. Call me pessimistic and whiny, but this is the first time I've actually been one to want to complain. I miss my show. So far, I'm liking the turn of events since "SR 819", but I doubt any amount of arguing is going to convince me that "The X-Files" is still consistently around anywhere but X2 and FX. It's changed, y'all. And I can't help but fear for the future of The Files.

UPDATE: (2/6) Since this webpage has been on the 'net, I have received many... er, disagreements with our views. (It seems those who don't understand never will.) I have been told that I am not a "true shipper" because I did not like "Rain King" or "Ghosts". Baloney. Like I said above, the Mulder/Scully relationship is, for me, a wonderful and integral part of The Show. But, it is not all I want or expect from CC's creation. I have known The Show to turn my expectations on their ear by a story line that robs me of my very breath. I have sat back in awe as the characters fight against all odds to do what they think is right. I know that Chris Carter is a genius and can turn out episodes so unique and beautifully original that one wonders how anything else on television can compare. Well, when the focus of The Show shifts completely towards the Mulder/Scully relationship, it is no longer the same show. What makes all the aforementioned qualities so magnificent is that they're driven by an undercurrent of the deep, abiding love that exists between these two. When you start shoving it in our faces, it is no longer special. It is obvious, trite. Any program can dwell on relationships and mush, but how many can do it intelligently without the viewers' conscious knowledge?

Another comment I've received is that PAXFL is "anti-comedy episodes". This is not true. I know that personally, "Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space'" and "Small Potatoes" are two of my all-time most favorite episodes. Honestly. I don't think that any artistic creation could ever come close to rivaling the literary genius of these classic episodes. It's not that I don't like the more humourous episodes. I do. So much. But, I like them for two reasons. One: they're done with the assumption that the viewers have an IQ above -60. And two: they're used in contrast to the darker episodes. They play against the angsty mood of the series that, as Entertainment Weekly puts it, "makes itself ripe for parody." This has been sorely lacking this season. The X-Files doesn't work when it's all about guest stars and Hollywood and keeping David and Gillian happy and about how much money FOX is making and how we can attract all those people who watch Married... With Children and Friends to The Show and "When do we get to make another movie?" For TXF, specifically the comedic episodes, to be believable and entertaining, they have to make the viewers think. They have to be intelligently written and portray characters that are real. Characters that could truly exist. "Rain King" was so hideous because it utterly neglected everything The Show has been about since 1993. Mulder and Scully cannot change who they are simply to make some higher-up rub his hands together in greedy anticipation of all the moola that will come flooding in from this one. Screw Hollywood. Give us a show that sticks to its principles and turns out comedy eps in moderation, in contrast to its darker nature. Outings like "Dreamland" make me shudder as I think of how the very mention of someone like Morris Fletcher would have been vetoed by CC any other season due to the excessive stupidity and sitcom-esque nature of the character. Sure, I'm all for growth and change. I don't want The Show to stagnate. But, I want change for the better, change that's believeable and positive and smart and done for the right reasons and continues to play to the high level of intellect of its audience. And even though I can now, with most of XF-Lite behind us and with a much lowered sense of good taste and drastically reduced expectations, watch the Mulder/Scully moments of both "Dreamland"'s, I will never appreciate being treated like a four-year-old by Ten-Thirteen. It's above me. It's above them.

It's above Mulder and Scully.

UPDATE: (1/15/00) I feel like I have been very quiet since the sixth season ended. Truth be told, I haven't said a thing on any of the mailing lists I'm on since "Amor Fati". And it's not because I don't like this season, I just haven't felt as compelled to comment.

I'm not sure what it is about Season Seven that has left me so apathetic. I really liked "Amor Fati" and "Millennium" - the depth of emotion in both episodes could have driven them alone (I watched those endings over and over and over, and well, you get the idea), yet we got terrific story lines to boot. But, somewhere, in the back of my mind, even the brightest shining episodes this season seemed dimmed somehow in comparison to The Show as a whole. There seems to be a lack of ... something - some spark, some mystery that held the show together in years past.

To be fair, I must consider the possibility that this deficiency lies in me. Could it be that last season soured on me TXF? Maybe it's that I'd get so hyped up for new episodes that when I became disgusted instead of delighted, I began to build walls. If I don't let myself become emotionally involved, I can't be devastated by poor episodes. A little obsessive, yes, but then I've never been one to do things halfway. And maybe in the back of my mind I know this could quite possibly be their last year. If I don't care what happens, I wont be hurt when Mulder and Scully are forever gone from my living room.

Yet more likely a cause is that, IMO, the mystery has gone from The Show. No longer can we sit and debate endlessly over a sidelong glance from Mulder or a muttered comment from Scully. We know they're in love and that they know it. If nothing else, Season Six beat us to death with that. And there's been no real suspense since the premiere. The only characters I care about are M&S, and we know they'll live happily ever after, individually if not together. Was Scully really going to die in "Orison"... duh, NO! And I don't even have faith that 1013 will follow up on that whole Murder In Cold Blood thing.

At the end of last season, I had promised myself I'd try to like this season. Final year, final chance to be wowed. I'm having a really hard time keeping that promise. The writing's been good (which is a nice change since last year), but I haven't been truly impressed yet. In seasons past, I'd been known to throw things at the TV. While not necessarily constructive, it did show how much I cared. Nothing yet has made me honestly care. And I want to. Badly. It's sad when I find more enjoyment in fanfic than I do in new episodes. So, as a few final notes to Mr. Carter and FOX: 1) Please end it this year. Everyone wants to move on. Another season would only be painful. 2) As a finis shipper (which I've just recently discovered), I rather see M&S become involved at the end. They've got a relationship now. Tweak it. Play with it. Don't ruin or belabor it. And 3) Find a way to inject some mystery and intrigue in your last few episodes. Make them memorable. Leave us with one last shining supernova of a season that gives us a final glimpse of the genius that The X-Files really is.

Hey, all. Thanks for visiting our site! After writing at least 20 negative posts to the XF-Relationshippers and XF-Main Chaos listserves since November over the direction our beloved series has taken, Rebecca and I decided to do something about it. We started the website as a way to tell the world, WE WANT OUR SHOW BACK! GIVE US THE ANGST, THE COMPLEXITY, THE PLOT, FOR GOODNESS SAKE!!!

I've reviewed every ep this season. I was a bit disappointed with "The Beginning" (felt that it rehashed the movie), liked "Drive" but thought it one of Vince (da man!) Gilligan's lesser efforts, and then loved "Triangle." However...it's been all downhill since then, until "SR 819," which was full of suspense, intrigue, AngstRidden!Scully, Investigative!Mulder, Ambiguous!Skinner, the return of Senator Matheson, the even more welcome return of RatBoy, a.k.a. Krycek, and most importantly, the return of a plot.

I have reviewed all of the sixth season episodes thus far and hope you will read them for greater insight into my reasons for co-founding PAXFL. Most eps I have found disappointing--two, Triangle and SR 819, I found wonderful, for different reasons. I can only hope that future eps will contain the complexity that these two eps contained!

Let us hope for more eps like "SR 819," and if we are not lucky, and we get more HTGSC eps, be prepared to send small potatoes flying in the direction of da boyz at 1013!

UPDATE: (3/13) I continue to be frustrated and disappointed by the sixth season of the series, which is, in my opinion, the worst season yet. This includes seasons one, which had its shaky moments, because The X-Files was still finding its footing, and season five, which had some real losers, such as Schizogeny, Christmas Carol/Emily/All Souls, and the sequel that never should have been made, Kitsenugari. Pusher was a wonderful ep. May it live as a standalone ep forever.

I liked eps such as Tithonus (though I thought Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose was better) and SR 819 (because Skinner and Krycek were back and there was a plot and some intensity!), and I could handle Two Fathers/One Son, although hardly TXF's best mytharc, because at least it made an attempt at seriousness and continuity. But then (Muy) Agua Mala came along, which was just embarrassing to watch, and after perhaps the best ep of the season, Monday, we got Arcadia, a look at how Mulder and Scully might live as a couple. Some liked that ep, some did not, but it was yet another lighthearted ep, and we have seen quite enough of those this season, thank you very much.

So I can say that, despite my optimism and glee after watching Monday, I was depressed again after watching Arcadia, and future eps do not look very promising. This series has become a recycled parody of itself, and I don't feel very hopeful. I will absolutely continue to watch the series til the bitter end, because I am such a...focused fan, but it doesn't mean I have to like what I see. And although fellow Philes tell me to stop watching the series with such a critical eye, I feel that the show can, and should, be as good as at least its mediocre eps. When I get more excited about watching new Buffy the Vampire Slayer eps than I do about X-Files eps--though I am not disparaging that show, as I feel it is a very clever, entertaining, and sometimes thought-provoking series-- I know something has gone very awry. As always, your comments and suggestions for change are welcome. If it were up to me, Mulder and Scully would start discussing what has happened to them over the past six and a half years, the MOTWs would actually be convincing, the plots wouldn't be thin and explained in the last two minutes of the ep, and unless an ep were co-written by Vince Gilligan or Darin Morgan (the chances of which are nil), the humor would completely disappear.

Where has my beloved show gone? Alas, poor X-Files, I knew ye well...

UPDATE: (12/26) This season has been touch and go for me. I loved Amor Fati and Millennium, was less enthused about Rush, and was really disappointed in Hungry and especially The Goldberg Variant, which I did find to be a "lite" episode, though others disagree. We have many more eps to go this season, so I'm taking it one week at a time, and with a followup to Irresistable (Orison) and a COPS ep penned by Vince Gilligan to come, we'll see how the rest of the, in all probability, last season of The X-Files turns out. Stay tuned!

UPDATE: (1/15/00) I have very little to say about season seven (though reviews for all eps are currently on the website), because there simply isn't much to say. The eps have seemed very redundant to me, each a rehash of an earlier ep (or two or three). To say that I am discontented is putting it lightly. It's not even that this season is lite, per se, with the exception of The Goldberg Variation, but that it's simply uninteresting to watch. What happened to the terror? To the originality? How can Mulder solve a problem in five minutes? Why haven't Mulder and Scully at least discussed the issue of religion? And where the heck is Skinner, Gibson, and CSM?

I used to look forward to eps with baited breath...now I barely remember to watch and tape them. With the exceptions of Amor Fati (which I found highly layered and textured, and had a beautiful and sincere ending) and Millennium, which at least had a semblance of a plot and put closure to the MM series, there have been no eps that I have found even remotely memorable. It's no longer about the cheesiness quotient; it's about content, or lack thereof. I find "Now and Again," a CBS series about the government and starring Eric Close as a sort of younger, quippy Mulder type (his mentor is Scully-like in his scientific disbelief), far more engaging this season than TXF and that saddens me.

There are 15 episodes left, and I hope they bring back some of the power the earlier eps presented. If not...well, it was fun while it lasted, I guess, and maybe the movie series will reintroduce the intrigue of earlier seasons.

The Art of Criticism by Sue Brody

Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 00:57:07 -0400 I have some pretty strong feelings about one's right to criticize The X-Files, or any television series, film, novel, or what have you. Here is what I posted to The X-Files Main listserve on the topic. Comments are more than welcome. Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 18:43:53 -0500 <> < I've been on this list lurking off and on for over a year now, and I've been a faithful fan since "Squeeze." I think that some people on this list get carried away with finding fault, and it gives the whole list a distinctly negative slant. We should all keep in mind that people here tend to be the 'hardcore' fan and let's be honest, no one is as picky and demanding as a passionate, hardcore fan. What I do find unfortunate is the feeling, to me at least, that some are unhappy with the direction the series is going. Ok, that in itself is fine; it's inevitable that any continuing series changes, and that some fans will not like the changes. My problem is that it's as if now people are actively looking for the tiniest thing to not like, and using anything to justify the notion that "1013 don't care" or "the writing isn't as good now" or whatever their beef is.>> Okay, here is my take on it. I have been one of the more unhappy Shippers/Philes this year (and b/c I am a Shipper, I have found myself in the minority on most eps). I have found the writing to be inconsistent, at best, many plots to have been wrapped up in the last 5-10 minutes (or even in the last minute), Scully and Mulder to have been portrayed quite differently, acc'd to the ep (e.g., Scully in Agua Mala as opposed to, say, Scully in Monday), many "didn't happen" eps (cop out, IMHO), and too many comic eps. That said, I do not post this or on any list b/c I want to be negative. Sorry, but I really do have better things to do w/ my time, as I would have to believe most, if not all of us, do. I write, b/c, as was noted above, we are "passionate, hardcore fan(s)." If I didn't care deeply about the show, would I bother writing about it? No. I don't write about Law and Order, Drew Carey, Just Shoot Me, Will and Grace, the Simpsons, or other series, and I generally enjoy all of them. They are just not as impt to me as TXF is (and MM as an offshoot. I am also on a small Buffy mailing list.). I LOVE loving eps, and when Monday aired, I waxed enthusiastic. In addition, if I see an ep and find things that I like much more after two or three viewings, I note that to be fair (e.g., Dreamland II and Drive, which I particularly loved after another viewing, but only felt lukewarm about after its original viewing).

This is supposed to be a discussion list, not a "loved it, loved it" list, not a "me, too" list, or so I thought. This is a subject near and dear to me, b/c I have been flamed for my views, both on and offlist, and this hurts me deeply. Sure, when you take a more negative stance, you run the risk of being criticized (since you, too, are criticizing), and so you have to be somewhat tough, but there is silly nitpicking (though that is very subjective), there are ways to object to what one says or what one sees, and then there is plain flaming, pure and simple. I would like to think I fall into the middle category. I have found both the yea and naysayers in general to be very thoughtful on both the XF-Main and the XF-Romantics lists, and for that I am grateful. The list administrators do a nice job of controlling this, I think, and you guys are also to be congratulated for taking a breath before jumping in. As for myself, I always note that my initial review is "musings", which means open to change, and also that my comments only reflect my own. Yes, it is hard when a series changes, and there *have* been serious changes this series has undergone since season four, my favorite, and maybe even season five. Yes, that is a natural evolution. Doesn't mean one has to like them. Sometimes you grow out of love w/ someone. Sometimes, one grows in a way you don't like or understand. This is natural and is different for everyone. I don't think ANYONE here enjoys criticizing TXF b/c it's fun--it's b/c we are thoughtful people w/ diverse ideas. I have learned alot from reading the Milagro posts, and while I still don't particularly care for the ep, I have gained some insight into either what the writers intended or what many of you saw when you watched, which in many cases differed from what I saw. Thank goodness many of the eps still contain enough depth that we are able to discuss an ep for days (unlike an ep like Agua Mala, which just didn't lend itself to a helluva lot of discussion). I might add that I co-formed PAXFL (Philes Against X-Files Lite) so Shippers, Noromos, Philes and fencesitters could express their views about the season in a more user-friendly format. So you will rarely see me comment about that aspect of the season on this or the XFR now (and I hope DD's ep is just good fun, kind of needed after Milagro--it's not a bad thing to have a comic ep, it's just the proliferation of them that I objected to). This is certainly not a flame on either of the posters above, just a comment on why I think it's okay not to love something but to continue to watch, comment, and to hope. If I had hated every ep this season, perhaps I wouldn't still be watching anymore, but that isn't the case, and I know TXF has a lot of life left in it. And I am also one of those Philes who would love CC&Co to read viewer reviews, and yet ultimately keep true to their own vision, even if not always popular. That is what writers do. In a workshop, you read the views of your co-writers, good and bad, and then decide what to keep. Clearly, 1013 has finished an ep and have moved on b/f we get to see it, but if our views influence their thoughts about future insight and writing in any way, there's nothing wrong w/ that. Just my .02 plus some.

 

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